Troubled World At War Celebrates Christmas In Peace

It is a rare time of peace in a world too often at war. Much of the planet paused to usher in Christmas at local times Monday night and Tuesday morning, a moment when hopes of tranquility are all too often shattered by reality.

At the Vatican, Pope Benedict lit a candle in St. Peter’s Square, a symbolic way to light the way through the darkness. He later celebrated midnight mass urging those listening to set aside time for God and the needy.

“Man is so preoccupied with himself, he has such urgent need of all the space and all the time for his own things, that nothing remains for others, for his neighbor, for the poor, for God,” he intoned.

The ceremony was both solemn and spiritual as Benedict XVI blessed the thousands assembled in the Square, who hung on every word. Most of the homily was delivered in Italian but the message was one that didn’t really need translation.

But for many, the highlight will come Tuesday, during the traditional Urbi et Orbi, translated as “the city and the world,” a message about current events and religion. Then comes his Christmas greetings to the faithful in more than 60 languages.

In troubled Bethlehem and Nazareth, where the story began, thousands of pilgrims flocked to the Church of the Nativity as part of a major procession featuring bells, drums, bagpipes and men on horses. It was a relatively peaceful outing, a change from previous years when crackdowns prevented believers from reaching the area. But there were signs that all wasn’t well. Rifle-toting Palestinian police stood guard in large numbers as the parade went by.

Tourists tried their best to keep to the spirit of the season. “We are pretty excited to be in Nazareth. It’s amazing how people are celebrating their Christmas,” outlines a Guatemalan tourist named Miriam. “We’re very touched sharing it in Nazareth.”

In Afghanistan, Canadian troops strung up Christmas lights on makeshift trees, trying desperately to create some holiday cheer in a place far, far from home. Those with families and children back on these shores were hard pressed to find much of it.

“I must say it started getting harder (the day before Christmas Eve),” admits Capt. Patrick Hannan of Sorel, Quebec, who has a 10-year-old daughter back home. “Once your family starts moving around and celebrating and you’re all alone here, before that the morale was pretty good but now that it’s Christmas Eve and the family is celebrating, it’s hard.”

 

And he adds a grim truth that all soldiers know. “You always have to be on guard,” he cautions. “It doesn’t mean the insurgents will stop fighting just because it’s Christmas.”

 

Others felt a different absence. “Without snow we don’t feel the magic of Christmas,” agrees Cpl. Yanick Garneau.

Closer to home, in Mexico, a parade made it feel more like a carnival than a Yuletide celebration.

And in China, where religion isn’t encouraged, thousands still packed into a cathedral to attend midnight mass.

But one of the most solemn and poignant ceremonies took place in New York City. That’s where paramedics, firefighters, police and those who lost loved ones on 9/11 gathered at the site where the disaster happened. As construction continues to build over the physical signs of the carnage, many realized it might be the last midnight mass they would attend with the gaping wound still so visible.

“We’re trying to bring closure … for the last six years,” explains Rev. Brian Jordan, a chaplain who has presided over every midnight mass there since 2001. “It’s time to move on. It’s time for us to rebuild, not just for the site, but also to rebuild our spiritual lives.”

The future of what had been the World Trade Center and has come to be known as Ground Zero will look very different several Christmases from now. It’s expected five office towers, a transit hub and a special Sept. 11th memorial will open there in the next five years.